A Scottish assisted suicide bill has been defeated in its parliament: 82 - 36.[1]
http://www.thecourier.co.uk/news/scotland/critics-blast-assisted-suicide-bill-1.878651
The Bill would have allowed those with terminal or life-shortening illnesses
to end their suffering with the assistance of another person, known as a
"licensed facilitator".
It is being championed by Green MSP Patrick Harvie following the death of independent MSP Margo MacDonald in April 2014.
Alison
Britton, convener of the Law Society's health and medical law
committee, said the organisation was concerned that the Bill lacked
clarity and would be difficult to enforce.
She said: "We have
said throughout the passage of this Bill that legislation in this area
needs to be absolutely clear and those seeking to end their lives, and
those who assist them, need a robust and transparent process to be
certain under which conditions it would be lawful for assistance to be
provided.
"We remain concerned over the lack of definition of the
key terms, such as 'assistance' and 'life-shortening' and the functions
of the licensed facilitator are still uncertain.
"Lack of such clarity leads to ambiguity and leaves the legislation open to interpretation."
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[1] Alex Schadenberg, at http://alexschadenberg.blogspot.com/
